A Break in the Irish Impasse

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The agreement announced in London on Tuesday night by Prime Ministers John Bruton of Ireland and John Major of Britain provides a welcome nudge to the peace effort in Northern Ireland. That drive was dangerously stalled until President Clinton's visit to London and Belfast "concentrated the mind," as Mr. Major put it, and the British and Irish Governments tried to break the deadlock.

They fell well short of a breakthrough, but the agreement should keep the parties engaged. In an atmosphere in which political rivalries have long been expressed through violence, the 15-month cease-fire in Northern Ireland has left nationalists and Unionists searching uneasily for a way to pursue their goals through a political process. The institutions for doing so were long ago destroyed. By setting up interim talks, and leaving the agenda completely open, the agreement sustains some momentum toward peace and reduces the temptation to resort again to violence.

The main impediment to direct negotiation among all the parties remains unresolved, namely Britain's unreasonable insistence that the Irish Republican Army surrender some of its weapons before talks can begin. But the agreement does create a mechanism that may help untangle that issue. Mr. Major and Mr. Bruton agreed to establish a long-discussed international commission on disarmament of the paramilitary groups. The commission will be headed by former United States Senator George Mitchell, a man trusted by all sides, and two other members not yet chosen, one Canadian and the other from a Scandinavian country.

While the recommendations of the commission will not be binding, Mr. Mitchell may be able to come up with a compromise approach that will satisfy the British while not humiliating the I.R.A. The prospects for peace will wither without some resolution of the arms issue.

Perhaps the most encouraging development is that the British and Irish Governments are acting together again on Northern Ireland, after a dangerous rift. Progress toward peace so far has been propelled by joint efforts of the two Governments.

The White House has acted constructively through the past two years, urging the parties to keep talking. While no substantive issue has yet been solved, Mr. Clinton can mark 15 months without war in Northern Ireland as he visits Belfast today.

A version of this article appears in print on , Section A, Page 28 of the National edition with the headline: A Break in the Irish Impasse. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe